Side rest iron



March 7, ESQ H. GRAHAM ETAL SIDE REST mom Filed July 5, 1945 Patented Mar. 7, 1950 SIDE REST IRON Maurice H. Graham and John N. Polivka, Minneapolis, Minn., assignors to General Mills, Inc. a corporation of Delaware Application July 5, 1945, Serial No. 603,312

Claims.

This invention relates to electric irons and particularly to side rest irons.

An object of the invention is the provision of improved means for enabling an electric iron to rest on its side when not lying flat in. the ironing position.

This and other objects as will hereinafter appear are accomplished by this invention which is fully describedv in the following specification and shown in the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of an electric iron embodying the invention shown partly in section; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the iron placed on its side;

Figs. 3 and 4 are enlarged partial sections on the lines 3- and tof Fig. 1 showing a preferred form of side button;

Fig. 5 is a section similar to Fig. 3 showing a modified form of side button;

Fig. 6 is a partial section on the line B- of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of another modified form of side button and wire clip retainer;

Fig. 8 is similar to Fig. 7 showing still another modification of side rest button; and

Figs. 9 and 10 are partial sections on the lines 9- and Iii of Fig. 7.

The embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1 through 4 comprises an electric iron having a sole plate ill, a hollow housing i2, a handle ll, preferably of plastic, and an electric cord is through which electric current is supplied to the heating elements (not shown) of the iron. These parts are held together by suitable means such as bracket ll secured by screws i8 to the sole plate, a hook engaging the top of the bracket and secured to the under side of the housing by a screw 22 threaded into a suitable sleeve in the plastic handie, and a screw 26 which ties the handle, housing and sole plate together.

A button 30 preferably elongated parallel to the handle is secured to one or both sides of the housing and serves as a side rest support for the lower portion of the iron when it is laid on its side as shown in Fig. 2.

In this preferred form the button is made 0 sheet metal pressed into the hollow shape shown in Figs. 3 and 4 with ears 32, 34 at the ends adapted to extend through openings 38, 38 in the housing, one or both the ears being bent over from the dotted to the full line position shown for the car 34 to secure the button on the housing. This button is relieved to form spaces 40 for the circulation of air into the hollow space beneath the button to assist in cooling it.

In Fig. 5 is shown a button preferably of plastic, with metal nuts 52 molded therein and adapted to receive screws 54 which pass through holes in the housing H2. Here again the button is relieved to form a space 58 to permit circulation of air to assist in cooling the button and to prevent conduction of heat from the housing to the button except at the ends which are in contact.

Figs. '7, 9, and 10 show another form of button preferably of plastic having an elongated body 60 with a long reduced stem 62 adapted to pass through a similarly shaped opening 64 in a housing 2l2 of an electric iron. A spring wire clip 66 with bent back ends is adapted to fit snugly in a notch 58 in the stem 62. The body may be provided with transverse notches 6| if desired.

The button of Fig. 8 is a modification of the button of Fig. '7 and has a body III which like the body 60 of Fig. '7 is made arcuate to fit the contour of a housing. It has two spaced stems 12 which are adapted to pass through round openings in the housing. Each stem has an annular groove 14 adapted to receive a snap ring for locking the button in place. This button is relieved by cutting it away at it to provide an air space to help keep the button cool.

The plastic buttons may be made in colors to add to the appearance of the iron and the metal button of Fig. 3 may be covered with a colored vitreous enamel.

If any of these buttons become broken. chipped. or it is desired to replace them with buttons of a different color or shape they are all readily replaceable.

The transfer of heat from the housing to the buttons is slow so that the buttons never attain the heat even of the housing and consequently will not injure anything they touch because of their heat.

These buttons whether of colored plastic or of metal enameled in suitable color can also be made an attractive feature for improving the appearance of the irons.

Thus it will be seen we have provided an improved form of electric iron and one which is ass-9.91s

We claim as our invention:

1. An electric iron having a sole plate, a housing extending above the sole plate, a handle extending above the housing, buttons pressed from sheet metal to form a. hollow elongated body with a single open side facing the housing and with ears extending therefrom engaging slots in the sides of the housing to retain the buttons thereon, said buttons extending beyond the sides of the housing to cooperate with the handle to form side rests for the iron when it is laid on either side, and a portion of the button adjacent the housing being relieved to provide a space for circulation of air to the interior of the button.

2. An electric iron having a sole plate, a housing above the soleplate, a handle above the housing, and a separate side rest on the housing for cooperation with the handle to support the iron in a tilted position, the side rest comprising a hollow body portion having integral top, bottom and end walls defining an open side facing the housing, means on one of the walls fastening the side rest to the housing, and two of the walls having openings for circulation of air through the interior of the body portion. 3. An electric iron according to claim 2 in which the top and bottom walls have openings for circulation of air through the interior of the body.

4. An electric iron having a soleplate, a housing above the soleplate, a handle above the housing, and a separate side rest on the housing for cooperation with the handle to support the iron in a tilted position, the side rest comprising a hollow body portion having integral top, bottom, and end walls defining an open side facing the housing, means on one of the walls fastening the side rest to the housing, and at least one m the walls having an opening therein for circula- ='.ion of air through the interior of the body portion.

5. An electric iron having a soleplate, a housing above the soleplate, a handle above the housing, and a separate side rest on the housing for cooperation with the handle to support the iron in a tilted position, the side rest comprising a hollow elongated body portion having top, bottom, front and rear walls defining a single open side facing the housing, the front and rear walls having ears extending inwardly through slots in the housing to retain the side rest thereon. and a portion of the top and bottom walls being relieved adjacent the housing to form a space for circulation of air through the interior of the body portion.

MAURICE H. GRAHAM. JOHN N. POLIVKA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Germany Dec. 29. 1930 

